Poetic Offerings

For this closing event of the festival program, a duo of two powerful poetic voices has been invited:

Jason Allen-Paisant and James Noël, accompanied by violinist Neneh Sowe. Allen-Paisant will read an excerpt from his long poem *SNOW*, which is soon to be published in book form. In it, he does not focus on snow merely as a landscape element or a climatic phenomenon. Rather, he treats it as a psychological state, a historical force, and a metaphysical atmosphere. At its core, SNOW forms a counter-cosmology centered on the Mesoamerican feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl. The work attempts to make sense of phenomena such as recurrence, catastrophe, sacrifice, struggle, and time itself in today’s crisis-ridden world.

Quetzalcoatl also becomes the poet’s beloved in the work. According to Allen-Paisant, there is “an erotic-mythical system that flows beneath the political mood of the book.”

James Noël’s poetry collection *Paons* explores questions of identity, cultural heritage, and the uncertainties of human experience, focusing in particular on the context of Haitian culture. With vivid imagery and evocative language, Noël reflects on personal and collective stories, using the magnificent paons (peacocks) as a metaphor for beauty and grandeur amid the struggles and aspirations of people confronting life’s hardships. The poems often interweave elements of memory, resilience, and the search for belonging. They invite readers to immerse themselves in the emotional landscapes of his narrative. The collection is conceived as a powerful tribute to the indomitable spirit of those who defy all odds and seek meaning.

• Part of Bwa Kayiman: Crossing the Mangrove.